How to Recover Deleted Photos from an iPhone
Are you trying to look for some pics on your iPhone, but you can’t find them? Similar to data loss, the photos on your iPhone can get erased. Wondering how? You may tap the wrong option unknowingly and end up deleting your photo gallery. Also, when deleting pictures that you don’t want on your phone, you may accidentally erase some you’d have wished to keep. There is no need to panic if either happens, as you may be lucky to recover the photos deleted from your iOS mobile device. In this guide, you’ll learn some vital steps you can take to retrieve all valuable photos you might have erased from your iOS phone.
How Do You Recover Recently Deleted Photographs On Your iPhone?
This is the most straightforward way to recover deleted shots on your iPhone. Pics erased from an iPhone are stored in the ‘Recently Deleted’ folder for 40 days, after which they are permanently removed from your device. The good news is that you can restore your deleted photos within this period (40 days).
Here are the steps to follow to retrieve recently deleted photos:
- Go to your iPhone’s home menu
- Open the photo app
- Select albums
- Navigate to the ‘Recently Deleted’ folder
- Open and select the pics you’d like to undelete
- Tap recover (the photos will be restored)
How Can You Recover Photos Permanently Erased from an iPhone?
The term ‘permanently deleted’ refers to photos that have surpassed 40 days after deletion and have automatically been erased from your Apple phone. If you know the importance of data backup, you won’t take chances with your iPhone. You’ll back up your photos in iCloud or iTunes or opt for any other reliable backup solution. That way, you’ll have an easy way to get back your photos if they are permanently deleted from the iPhone. Let’s explore the various methods to recover photos permanently erased from an iPhone.
Method 1: Photo Recovery via iCloud Backup
It’s recommended that you use iCloud (Apple’s backup service) to store your photos or any other form of data that you consider important. iCloud will back up your iPhone photos/files automatically. If you ever delete them from your iOS mobile device, you can recover them from iCloud backup. Remember, when recovering your photos from iCloud backup using your iPhone, the device will be restored to the previous backup. Therefore, you may have to first backup the smartphone to the current settings. Otherwise, use a third-party device to retrieve the lost pics.
Here are the steps to recover the photos from your iPhone’s iCloud backup:
- Open your iPhone’s settings app
- Go to General
- Select Reset
- Tap ‘Erase all content and Settings’ option (to reset set up your device)
- Go to the Apps and Data screen
- Select Restore from iCloud Backup
- Log into iCloud (using your Apple ID)
- Select photos to recover > Restore
Method 2: Photo Recovery via iTunes Backup
iTunes backups come in handy when you cannot access your iPhone; maybe its screen is damaged, or you’ve forgotten the password. This does not mean that you cannot use iTunes on your iPhone. However, you may experience data loss since your device’s data, and settings will be restored to the backup content.
To recover your iPhone shots via iTunes backups:
- Use a USB to connect your device to a computer
- Go to iTunes
- Click iPhone icon
- Select the Summary option
- Navigate to Backups > Restore Backup
- Choose the relevant backup > Restore
Method 3: Restore Photos from Google Photo Backup
Consider having an alternative backup plan. This is important in cases where the iCloud and iTunes backups may prove not very practical for you due to the possibility of losing data during photo recovery. You may decide to back up your pics on a third-party service such as Google Photo. All you need is to turn on your iPhone’s Google photo Backup and Sync option. Any photo you delete from your device will be stored in the Google Photo trash bin for 60 days before it can be deleted permanently. Luckily, you can recover the erased photos, provided they are still backed up somewhere on Google Photo.
Follow these steps:
- Go to your iPhone
- Access Google Photos
- Open Library > Trash
- Select pics to undelete
- Tap Restore
Method 4: Retrieve Photos from Messaging Apps
Do you know you can get back photos shared via messaging apps such as WhatsApp? These pics may be deleted from your device (iPhone) but will remain on the IM application’s server. To recover photos from your messaging app, go to the shared media or mailed files on your messaging app. Choose pics you’d like to recover.
Method 5: Get Back Photos from an iPhone with no Backup Solution
Are your photos permanently erased from your iOS phone, and you’ve no backup? All is not lost. Resort to a third-party photo recovery solution. These are software designed to help you get back all-important photos permanently deleted from your iOS mobile phone. A reliable photo recovery software solution will help salvage inaccessible pictures from your device where no backup is available. There are various iPhone photo recovery solutions that you can use when all the above options have failed. Some of these tools include;
- Disk Drill
- PhoneRescue for iOS
- Wondershare iPhone Photo Recovery
- ApowerRescue iPhone Photo Recovery
- Tenorshare iPhone Photo Recovery
- iSkysoft Photo Recovery
With a wide range of photo recovery apps today, finding the best for you can be daunting. However, you can narrow your option by focusing on the elements that make a reliable photo recovery tool. These include; User-friendliness, multiple recovery options, selective scanning and retrieval features, enabled preview feature, and cost. Remember, no data will be lost during your photo retrieval with third-party recovery apps. Also, no iPhone resetting is required.
Avoid Losing Your iPhone Photos
Back up your iPhone content more regularly. You may choose to create iTunes, iCloud, third-party service backup, or save your photos on your computer and update the record regularly. That way, you stand a better chance of retrieving your deleted iPhone photos.
Summing Up
Now you have an idea of how to recover deleted photos from an iPhone. However, you must note that none of the above-discussed options will guarantee a 100% recovery rate. As a result, ensure you have a good backup strategy to help reduce the risks of losing your iPhone data.